Category: holy spirit

Three Strong Women

Strong Woman #1:

She watched as the water rose a little higher each day. The beautiful pasture behind her house was gone. The only evidence her house had not been built lakeside was the many trees still trying to climb above the rising floodwaters to reach the sky above. The barn that normally stored her husband’s equipment and tools was in the middle of this new “lake” and reachable only by boat.

She stood on the back step of her house explaining to her friends by live-feed that they couldn’t stay at their home any longer since it, too, could only be reached by boat. She asked for prayers for everyone living in her rural community, but she also made sure we knew she was going to be fine because God was already providing for her family.

She was so positive about her dire circumstances that it was inspiring.

Strong Woman #2:

In an interview following the hurricane that devastated her community, she admitted to looking at her husband in the midst of the storm and telling him they weren’t going to make it. They did make it but had to climb through rubble to get out of the building that collapsed around them.

Her life, her community, her town in shambles – she went to work. She was the mayor and her people needed her to be strong when they couldn’t be. She organized; she helped; she found resources; she did whatever she needed to do to help the people counting on her. All the while, she kept a line of communication going for the community to both give them needed information and also lift their spirits.

She was so positive about her dire circumstances that it was inspiring.

Strong Woman #3:

She listened to what the doctor had to say. The diagnosis was worse than she had originally been told. It was cancer and it had spread. She was no stranger to cancer. She was a widow of nearly six years because of cancer. She had fought it a few years ago in her own battle and won.

She looked to the doctor with a brave smile on her face and told him she was going to hold on to what her very wise grandson had told her five years ago when she faced her first battle. That young boy, who was wise beyond his ten years, told her that if she won that fight she was going to get to stay with him, the grandson. If she didn’t win, she would get to stay with Jesus. “Either way, it’s a win/win situation for you, Grandma,” she repeated.

She was so positive about her dire circumstances that it was inspiring.

These three woman have all recently found themselves in circumstances that would break many people. I’m sure they each feel overwhelmed and afraid at times. As of this moment, all three are still living in their respective crisis. Despite their circumstances, they are all three a beautiful example of the Proverbs 31 wife. They are all inspiring.

“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue…’Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all’ (Proverbs 31:25-26,29 NIV).”

What if Jesus Wrote Our New Year’s Resolutions?

My lunch box looks like my new year’s resolution has something to do with eating healthy. (We won’t discuss the donut I got at the coffee shop this morning on my way to work.) My credit card statement looks like my news year’s resolution has something to do with living on a budget. Both of these are probably good resolutions and things I should do, but they aren’t my new year’s resolution.

In the first Sunday sermon I heard this year, Pastor Phil asked, “What if Jesus wrote our new year’s resolutions?” Wow! What an interesting thought! What if He did? I think my resolution would be “do not be afraid and do not worry.”

The list of Bible verses instructing us not to be afraid and not to worry is nearly endless. Here are just a few.

Matthew 6:34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and staff, they comfort me.

Deuteronomy 31:6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.

My list could go on for a very long time, but I think you can already see the pattern in these five verses.

Don’t worry and don’t fear. If you are focussed on Jesus, He will take care of you. Life may not always be trouble-free and painless, but He will be with you to sustain you through this life until you reach the end of it, and then He will meet you at the gate to the next life…the one that lasts forever.

With Just One Breath

One breath… Take one breath with me right now. Feel your chest rise as your lungs fill with air. Feel it fall as you exhale. Let’s do it again, but this time close your eyes. Make it a long, slow, deep breath. Imagine you can not only feel but can also see the air as it enters your nostrils, passes through your throat and down your windpipe, then flows into the passages of your lungs eventually passing oxygen to your bloodstream. As you slowly exhale, imagine the carbon dioxide flowing out of you only to be replaced by more oxygen in the next breath.

Some of us have no difficulty breathing. Others struggle with every single breath we take. Easy or difficult doesn’t change the fact that your heart needs oxygen from our breath to continue to beat. Each breath we take is important, but there was one breath taken – one simple breath – that changed the course of humanity. There was one breath taken in all of history that impacted every person living today and every person who has ever lived.

That one breath…

There was no machine to force the chest to rise and fall in an artificial rhythm. There was no one performing CPR trying to stimulate the lungs to inhale on their own. There was nothing but stillness. For three days the body with unmoving lungs and unbeating heart lay on stone carved into a cave tomb. For three days all of humanity was lost in death.

Then the stillness was broken. He took the breath – the breath that changed everything, the breath that gave us hope.

I Peter 1:3 states, “Praise be to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

With just one breath…

Am I a Songbird, a Crow, or Silent?

What kind of bird am I? Do I sing with the rest of the choir when the sun is shining but keep my beak clamped shut when my life is overcast? Worse yet, do I sit on my tree-top and squalk at those around me like a crow no matter how my surroundings appear?

I look forward to walking out the door of my apartment each morning. Not only am I escaping my tiny box of a home that I share with my 110 plus pound great dane and way-too-fat cat, I also enjoy the morning choir of songbirds that I am almost always blessed to listen to as I walk to my car each day. The chirping and singing is so cheerful it can brighten even the darkest of my moods as I make that short treck to the parking lot.

This morning as I was getting ready for work, I glanced out the window and found the skies to be overcast and dreary. I continued getting ready without noticing that my good mood was starting to cloud over with the skies. Though my life is really blessed and I have been very happy lately, I was allowing the blah-ness of the day to affect me without realizing it. When I had completed my morning routine, I grabbed my purse, lunch and keys and headed for my car. My thoughts were consumed by my schedule for the day and shadowed over by the clouds overhead, but about ten feet out my apartment door I heard something that stopped me in my tracks.

Despite the cloudy, dreary-looking skies, I could hear birds singing. I didn’t hear as many voices in the choir as on a sunny day, but that didn’t effect the beauty of their song. I forgot about my to-do list. I forgot about the clouds hiding the sun. I remembered just how blessed I am. I remembered how happy I am. Then I had a random thought. What kind of bird am I?

Do I sing with the rest of the choir when the sun is shining but keep my beak clamped shut when my life is overcast? Worse yet, do I sit on my tree-top and squalk at those around me like a crow no matter how my surroundings appear? I would love to say I continue my song even when I can’t feel the warmth of the sun’s rays on me, but I know I fail at this more often than not. These random thoughts reminded me of the Apostle Paul when he said, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want (Philippians 4:12, NIV).”

Am I content with my life so that I can sing my way through sunshine, clouds or rain? Am I content with my life so that I can lift some else’s spirit through the clouds or rain? I should sing despite the dark days. The Holy Spirit should be able to use me to lift the spirit of others on the overcast days we share. I should be a songbird no matter the skies.